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Space Shuttle Endeavour is poised to deliver the next crew to the International Space Station (ISS) later this month and a series of press briefings beginning at 8 a.m. CDT May 20 will outline the flight. The briefings will take place at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, and will be broadcast on NASA Television.

Ten years after its maiden voyage, Endeavour will launch no earlier than May 30 between 3 and 7 p.m. CDT to deliver the fifth expedition crew to the ISS, along with nearly two tons of supplies and experiments, and return the Expedition Four crew to Earth after six months aboard the station.

The mission also includes three Extravehicular Activities (EVAs), or spacewalks, to attach a Power and Data Grapple Fixture on the station's exterior and install and hook up a Mobile Base Servicer on the station's "railroad," which was delivered last month. Both items are part of the system supporting the station's robotic arm. Spacewalkers also will replace the arm's wrist roll joint.

Throughout the mission, equipment and supplies will be removed from the Italian-built Leonardo Multi Purpose Logistics Module. The high-tech moving van will be attached to the station, unloaded, and then reloaded with experiments and unneeded equipment for return to Earth.

Following the final briefing, round-robin interviews with crewmembers will be available to reporters at Johnson and those who make prior phone arrangements by calling Johnson's newsroom by 4 p.m. CDT on Thursday, May 16. The round-robin interviews will not be broadcast on NASA TV.

* Special Notice to International Media Representatives:International media wishing to cover the briefings or participate by phone in the round-robin interviews must notify the Johnson newsroom no later than May 10 by calling 281/483-5111. International media wishing to participate in the briefings from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Florida, should contact its newsroom at 321/867-2468 by May 10.

NASA TV is available on GE-2, Transponder 9C, at 85 degrees west longitude, vertical polarization, with a frequency of 3880 MHz and audio of 6.8 MHZ.

The briefing schedule follows:

STS-111 Preflight Briefings -- May 20, 2002 (all times Central)

8 a.m.- International Space Station Program Overview Bill Gerstenmaier, ISS Deputy Program Manager